Red River Zoo
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The Red River Zoo is a
zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...
in
Fargo, North Dakota Fargo is the List of cities in North Dakota, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, Cass County. The population was 125,990 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which was e ...
. The zoo's first opened in the spring of 1999. It gained accreditation from the
Association of Zoos and Aquariums The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), originally the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (AAZPA), is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1924 and dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aqu ...
(AZA) in 2006.


History

The zoo currently sits on that was once a farm owned by the George Anderson family, also known as Red River Ranch. Some of the farm buildings were renovated and are used today by the zoo, while others were removed because they were unsafe. Although the original property was flat and had only seven trees, hundreds of additional trees and shrubs were planted and a series of five ponds created to landscape the area.


Animals

The award-winning Red River Zoo is home to over 600 animals representing 89 species, including
red panda The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzz ...
s. It also includes a 1928
carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...
that was fully restored in 1995 and donated to the zoo by the Diederich family. The zoo features a gray wolf exhibit featuring a family of six wolves. They can be viewed from outside or inside a "trapper's cabin" that has two large viewing windows to observe the wolf family. In 2013, the North American River Otter exhibit opened, featuring an indoor and underwater viewing area. The zoo specializes in breeding and exhibiting some of the world's rarest cold climate species, having successfully bred red pandas (11 births as of 2012, including two sets of triplets),
Sichuan takin The Sichuan takin or Tibetan takin (''Budorcas taxicolor tibetana'') is a subspecies of takin (goat-antelope). Listed as a vulnerable species, the Sichuan takin is native to Tibet and the provinces of Sichuan, Gansu and Xinjiang in the People's R ...
,
Pallas's cat The Pallas's cat (''Otocolobus manul''), also known as the manul, is a small wild cat with long and dense light grey fur, and rounded ears set low on the sides of the head. Its head-and-body length ranges from with a long bushy tail. It is w ...
s, and Russian Red Tree Squirrels.


The Red River Zoological Society

The Red River Zoo receives no public funds and depends on memberships, admissions, donations, and grants to the Red River Zoological Society and by its members. The Society was formed in 1993.


Notes

{{authority control Zoos in North Dakota Buildings and structures in Fargo, North Dakota 1999 establishments in North Dakota Tourist attractions in Fargo, North Dakota Zoos established in 1999